I have recently started the process of trying to quit smoking. My doctor has recommended that using the e- cigarette may be an effective way to wean myself off of my 22 year nicotine addiction and cigarette habit. So far, so good. However, I feel a bit awkward about e -cigarette etiquette and where the line of regulation should be drawn. Apparently, several states and cities in the country are starting to feel the same way.
Just in case you have been living under a rock, here are a few facts about the e-cigarette. It works by using an atomizer that release a vapor of a liquid solution that often contains flavoring and nicotine. Some of the solutions contain no nicotine at all. They are designed to look like and simulate a cigarette or cigar. The vapor is odorless. Thus far, there has been no evidence that suggests that second-hand vapor is a health concern. The FDA says on it’s website that it has not fully studied the potential harmful effects of the e-cigarette.
The e-cigarette and other electronic smoking devices (hookah and e-cigar) have recently been the subject of several bills signed into law. Many states such as New Jersey and Utah and cities like New York and LA have categorized them as tobacco products and banned their use in public and private areas, such as restaurants, bars and workplaces. A Maryland county is delaying moving forward on any legislation pending the results on a study that is being conducted by the University of Maryland. Many states and municipalities are passing legislation to ban the sale of all electric smoking products to minors, claiming it to be a gateway drug and highly addictive. The USDA has said it intend to regulate e-cigarettes as tobacco products, but has not issued any rules as of yet.
For many who are “vaping” on the e-cig, the rules have already been put in place for them. Those who vape in the states and cities who have banned use in public/private spaces are required to do so in designated areas with the tobacco smokers they are trying to avoid (or rather avoid passively smoking their second-hand smoke). How about in the other areas where no precedent has been set forth? Do you treat your e-cigarette like a regular cigarette and only smoke in designated smoking areas or do you vape wherever, whenever? As a non-smoker how do you feel about people vaping in public?
Recently, I was out to dinner in a non-smoking (all restaurants in Maryland are non-smoking) restaurant. I wanted to smoke, so I put on my coat and headed off in the cold for a “smoke” on my e-cig. My husband asked me why go outside, since I was just going to exhale vapor. Hmm, good point, so I took one long drag off of the e-cig, exhaled a nice white cloud of vapor and instantly felt very uncomfortable and out of place. I couldn’t do it, I couldn’t vape in mixed company. Why? I felt it “looked” bad. So, I have determined that my line is, no in restaurants, definitely no in non-smokers homes, and a maybe in a bar, depending on the venue. I never smoke during the day at work, so that isn’t an issue. But my line does not come from feeling that vaping harmful to others, unlike actual cigarette smoke, but because I feel it just seems rude for me to vape at the table or around people who don’t vape.
Having tried to quit before, I can say that the e-cigarette has been a gift. I can’t and won’t take Chantix, nicotine replacement products make me ill and do nothing about curbing the “habit” part of my addiction. I’ve grown accustomed to, and rather like not being able to smoke while I’m eating in a restaurant and I can live without sitting in a bar and smoking. But smoking isn’t a huge part of my life as it is to some, I can deal with the temptation in smoking areas. However, by forcing a person who is trying to quit smoking and who is highly addicted into an area filled with those smoking cigarettes, exposing them to their drug of choice, couldn’t that be setting them up to fail? Don’t we tell people who are trying to release themselves from addiction to change the “places” that trigger temptation to fall off the wagon? If one is offended by the way vaping “looks” could a possible solution be to set up “vaping areas?” Or should we retrain the public and help them to understand the power of nicotine addiction?
Additionally, I’m keeping an eye on the “gateway drug” argument. This is the perfect opportunity for hysteria to set in among the parental witch-hunting watch groups, who tend to enjoy throwing the proverbial baby out with the bathwater.
The e-cigarette has been a saving grace to people who thought they could never quit smoking, which is not only the number one cause of many life threatening diseases, but is a costly burden to our society. I know many people who have been able to eventually quit both smoking and the e-cigarette. I’m hoping this will be me one day. Therefore, while I’m okay with not selling to minors, and open to allowing areas for just e-smoking (or vaping), I’m hoping that the FDA, USDA and state governments will examine the product fairly and not jump on what seems to be a bandwagon based on emotional judgment rather than a factual one.
